A Little Something on the Side With Sanji
by three-days-late
Summary: AU in which Sanji and friends attempt to survive life.


**Welcome to my new side-project! This is to be a collection of random stories in the little universe from _A Date With Sanji_. The thing is though that they might not necessarily be in chronological order. If it actually matters, then I'll tell you where on the time line it exists.**

**This is the tale of how Zoro and Sanji first met back in high school. Since it takes place in high school, well, they're in high school, so yeah. Don't judge. Actually wasn't supposed to be this long, but it got a little out of control. Sorry.**

**Enjoy.**

**I do not own One Piece or the awesome that it produces.  
**

* * *

Zoro did not like the new kid.

It was _not_, as Usopp insisted, because he was jealous of the new kid. It was because the new kid was a prick. Not that Zoro had spoken three words to the guy to have any basis for this opinion, but it's not like the new kid was letting him, thus him being a prick.

He hadn't even been at the school for an hour and he already had all of the girls' names and half their cell numbers, included three of the teachers. The male half of the school, on the other hand, he had ignored completely, not even bothering to give the time of day or drop his name. In fact the only way Zoro knew the new bane of his existence was known as Sanji B-something-or-other was because that was the only thing the girls would gossip about in the hallways.

"Did you see that new kid, Sanji?"

"Sanji's eyes…you could just get lost in them!"

"Sanji's hair is so shiny, I wonder if he has his own stylist."

"Sanji's eyebrow is so swirly! I just want to pet it!"

Zoro knew that they'd settle down eventually. He was just something new for them to talk about. In about a week they'll get bored with him and go find a new gossip target.

That wasn't the reason Zoro knew he was a prick though. See, he already had the displeasure of coming across several people just like him in his school career. Why the system thought the needed another useless prick like him running around the hallways was beyond Zoro's reasoning.

These guys were all the same; all talk and no action. They'd say a lot of stuff that made them appear to be demigods in their own right, but if you ever actually questioned them on it, they'd either threaten to kick your ass or awkwardly change the subject. They were bullies who picked on everyone weaker then themselves because they needed to feel big and couldn't stand up to anyone who might actually pose a threat to them. They were just as quick to betray their friends as they were to hurt those enemies that they were willing to fight. They were the worst kind of cowards imaginable, and Zoro hated every single one of them, the new kid included.

So when Luffy excitedly said, "Let's make friends with the new kid!" Zoro was questioning his friend's sanity.

"Luffy, are you crazy? The guy's a prick."

Luffy, for his part, just laughed him off. "No he's not. Besides, he said his dad owns a restaurant! If he becomes our friend then we can get free food!"

"You're just in it for the food. How do you know he's not a prick?"

"How do you know he is?"

"Because…I just can tell is all."

Luffy tilted his head to the side and contemplated this new development. "Nope. Don't see it. Seems like a good guy to me. I trust him."

"Because your just soo great when it comes to other people." Zoro rolled his eyes.

"I trust you and Usopp don't I?"

Zoro couldn't think of anything to say after that.

Most of the school population just wrote him off as some demon of some sort while they wrote Usopp off as a pathological liar, and while this was true on both accounts, Luffy was the only one to date who hadn't just brushed them aside because of that and welcomed them into his crazy world with open arms. Maybe the new kid wasn't that bad…

No, Luffy was just being Luffy. He'd trust the janitor with his life savings if it came down to it. Soon the kid would realize what Zoro knew from the start, and he'd be forced to eat his words. It was now up to him to make sure that the whole 'eating words' thing didn't involve his best friend getting hurt in some way.

* * *

The three of them managed to meet up with the blonde just outside of the school grounds where he was lighting up a cigarette.

"Typical. You're a smoker." Zoro said.

The new kid looked up. "Well, better to have black lungs than green hair, Marimo-head."

"What was that?! Do you wanna die!?!"

"Zoro do you even know what a Marimo is?" Usopp asked.

"Of course! It's an insult!"

"It's a moss-ball." The new kid explained in a condescending tone. "It's actually considered a national treasure in Japan, and is worked into a few of their recipes." He shrugged, condescendingly. "You should consider yourself lucky to be associated with one."

Zoro growled and was more than ready to launch himself at the arrogant ass before Luffy's laughter stop him.

"That's funny! So you cook, huh?"

The blonde took a drag from his cancer stick. "As a matter of fact, I do help my father out in the restaurant when I can."

"That's so cool! I'm Luffy Monkey," he through his left arm around Usopp's shoulders, "this is Usopp Sogeki," he did the same with Zoro on the right, "and this is Zoro Roronoa. We're your new best friends, okay? So, let us eat at your restaurant!"

The new kid blinked. "You just want to eat at the restaurant? You don't need to be my friend to do that."

Luffy's grin doubled. "Yeah, but you seem like a good guy and I wanna be your friend. The food part is bonus."

The blonde chuckled at that and threw his cigarette on the ground to step on it and put it out. "Guess I have no choice then. I'm Sanji Blackleg." He turned down the street and started walking, only stopping to look over his shoulder when he realized that they weren't following. "You guys wanna eat or what?"

Luffy cheered and chased after him. Usopp started to follow but stopped when Zoro didn't.

"Just give him a chance, Zoro. If you don't want to trust him, then trust Luffy."

Zoro grunted and followed reluctantly.

* * *

Zoro grudgingly admitted that the new kid was good with food. That didn't stop him from being a prick though, and it didn't mean Zoro had to like the guy.

Sanji had somehow forced his way into their little group and before Zoro knew it he was everywhere. He was already in all of his classes, but now he was at their lunch spot and a stop at the Baratie on their way home from school was now a given. He didn't like it, and he didn't like the guy responsible for it.

Sanji, it seemed, wasn't as brain dead as Zoro took him to be.

"You don't like me very much, do you?" He questioned one day during algebra. Luffy and Usopp weren't in this class and the teacher was male, so Zoro had his full attention.

"What if I don't, curly-brow?" He had found that the kid's funny eyebrow was a sore subject and therefore took full advantage of it.

Sanji shrugged at his remark. "Nothing really. I'd like to know why though. You're not jealous are you?"

"Why would I be jealous of you?"

"My hair is a normal color, my face doesn't frighten small children, my brain actually works…I could continue if you want."

"And you wonder why I don't like you?" Zoro scoffed and turned his attention towards the front of the room.

"Because I'm better than you? Hate to break it to you, Marimo, but you're going to find yourself alone more often than not if that's your attitude on life."

"You're not better than me. I hate you because you're a spoiled, cocky, insufferable jackass." He shot a glare at him. "I know your type; you just use everyone around you to feed your intolerable ego. After you're done, you toss them away like so much garbage, not caring about them at all. Luffy and Usopp are my friends, and I won't let you hurt them like that."

Sanji remained silent for about a minute. "So you've got me all figured out don't you? Know exactly what makes me tick and what my motives are, do you? See, its guys like you that piss me off the most: Judgmental bastards who assume that everyone fits nicely into whatever label they give them and don't even bother to try to see them any other way. I usually don't waste any of my time with those shitty people, but lucky for you, I happen to like Usopp and Luffy and for some reason they're quite attached to you. I won't make you go and find new friends, but if you're waiting from me to go somewhere else, then you'll be waiting for a long, long time."

"Maybe not," Zoro said. "I'll just wait until you finally reveal your true colors to them."

"I don't have a hidden agenda, if that's what you're implying."

"Don't try to hide it, Question Mark, I've dealt with your type before and I know how to deal with them."

"Oh really, Mr. I-know-everything-in-the-universe? What exactly do you know about me considering you've never tried to get to know me?"

"Everything."

"Prove it." The blonde put his head in his hands while resting his elbows on his desk and looked at Zoro expectantly.

"For starters, you're a spoiled brat." Zoro began. "You're a mama's boy and daddy's favorite, so you refuse to fight for yourself at all. Your parents hand everything to you on a golden platter simply because you're their flesh and blood. Because your dad owns that restaurant, you have a cushy job set for the future, so you don't have to even try to get anything; it's all being handed to you."

Sanji raised his funky eyebrow, but didn't say anything.

"You constantly need people to feed your enormous ego. That's why you surround yourself with people who do nothing but praise you. You're obsessed with your social status, so if people start questioning your choice in friends, you will be more than willing to brush Luffy and Usopp aside like yesterday's sushi. You claim to be better than everyone else, but if you're challenged to prove it, you'll find yourself scrambling for excuses."

"Well thank you Mr. Arrogant Jackass. I never would have known my place in society if it wasn't for your stellar insight." Sanji smirked before turning his attention to his notes.

"No problem. Since you're too stupid to figure out how your brain works, let me know and I'll be willing to lend a hand."

"What the hell do you know about me anyway?" Sanji suddenly snapped. "If you'd bother to pay any mind at all during the two weeks we've known each other, you would realize what an insensitive ass you really are."

"What are you talking about?" Zoro asked, curious despite himself. "Everything I said was true, wasn't it? See this is you being unable to back up anything you say."

"You're an asshole. A very shitty asshole."

"Well what are you going to do about it? Go cry to mommy?"

At this point, Sanji apparently had enough. He stood up, slammed his notebook shut, and marched out of the classroom.

"Mr. Blackleg, where do you think you're going? Class is still in session." The teacher asked.

"Not for long." He replied. Sure enough as soon and Sanji stepped out of the classroom, the bell rang.

"Lucky prick." Zoro muttered. He tried to chase him down, but the blonde head was already lost in the sea of students.

* * *

Sanji didn't show up to lunch. Luffy questioned it, but Zoro said he just stormed out of class for no apparent reason and the topic was dropped.

When Usopp and Zoro showed up at their Lit class, they found Sanji already there in his seat in the back, gazing out the window.

"Hey Sanji, where were you during lunch?" Usopp asked.

"Huh? Oh, I just needed some fresh air, so I ate outside."

As everyone filed in and sat down, and announcement came over the PA system: "Attention students: please be reminded that unit lunch* is a _privilege_, not a right and that just because we provide you with picnic tables for your use does not mean you are free to destroy them. Also clean up the hallways when you are done eating. Thank you."

Then the whispers started.

"Can't believe someone had the nerve to trash the picnic tables," Usopp said. "You were outside Sanji, did you see anything?"

"Not a thing."

* * *

Weeks passed and Sanji had decided that the best way to deal with Zoro was to just flat out ignore him. He would only hang out with him when Luffy and/or Usopp were with them and even then he refused to so much as acknowledge his presence. During algebra he spent the time quietly taking notes, not responding even if Zoro bothered to attempt to provoke him. _Well fine_, Zoro thought, _he's just proving me right anyway._

Luffy was rather clueless to the whole thing, but Usopp was able to pick up that something was amiss. One day during lunch when Luffy landed himself lunch detention and Sanji was off doing god knows what, he asked Zoro what happened.

"Hell if I know. Prick's just being, well a prick."

"You didn't tell him that to his face did you?"

"He asked why I hated him…"

"Please tell me you didn't go into your, 'this is why you suck' tirade…"

"He wanted to know what I thought…"

"I thought as much." The long nosed kid sighed. "What did you say to him?"

"Nothing that wasn't true."

"How do you know that?"

"He's avoiding me isn't he? It's because he can't face the truth."

"Or because you offended him." Usopp thought about it for a bit. "You didn't mention his parents did you?"

"So what if I did?"

"It's a sore subject for him. He doesn't like to talk about it."

"Yeah, I'm sure getting dotted on at every possible moment must really be heart wrenching."

Usopp slapped him on the head. "Are you that insensitive?"

"Ouch! What'd ya hit me for?!"

"You really have no idea, do you?" Zoro's blank stare was enough conformation. "Sanji's an orphan. He doesn't know what happened to his birth parents. Old man Zeff took him in when he was ten."

"So? Real or not, his parents are still spoiling him."

"Parent," Usopp corrected, "and if you'd ever actually get to know the guy, he's anything but spoiled. Zeff works him to the bone!"

"He's still got his cushy little future-"

"No, he doesn't. Zeff's not going to just hand him the Baratie when he's done with school, not that Sanji wants it. If you'd bother to get to know him, you'd know his ambitions are as big as ours."

"Don't believe it."

"If that's your way of getting me to tell you, it's not going to work. Ask the guy yourself." The bell rang, effectively ending the conversation. Zoro and Usopp quickly cleaned up after themselves and hurried off to Lit.

* * *

Sanji still refused to talk to Zoro, and Zoro was in no hurry to change that any time soon. So when he saw the blonde hanging out with a couple of girls before school started, he felt no need to call out to him at all. And if by staying where he was he happened to overhear what they were saying, well those things happen too.

"Sanji, you're like, so cute." The brunette with orange skin said.

"Like totally super cute." The one with poorly bleached hair and orange skin agreed.

"Ah, to hear such praises from angels like you. Truly my life complete."

"Like seriously. I'd totally like date you if you like, got better friends." The not-blonde remarked.

_And here it comes…_ Zoro thought.

"Pardon?"

"Well," the brunette said, "like you're always hanging out with that freak Luffy and his lying friend Usopp."

"Like seriously. You like, can't trust anything that guy says like totally."

"And that Zoro. He's pretty cute himself, but he's always like, glaring and being all like scary and anti-social. The whole like bunch of them are like weirdoes. Seriously Sanji you could like, do so much better with friends."

"Like for serious."

The green-haired kid sighed, feeling sorry for his friends who had doubted him but knowing that the outcome was inevitable.

"Ladies, I'd advise you not to bad mouth my friends," Sanji responded. "Zoro maybe, because he is a douche, but what have Luffy and Usopp done to you to deserve such scorn?"

"They're like, creepy and weird."

"Like totally. You should like, hang out with us like instead."

"I'm sorry ladies, but I happen to like my friends."

"Sanji, like, don't be like that!"

"Seriously, I thought you were like, better than that."

"Apparently I'm not. Although I hope that instead you will change your opinion about my friends rather than me…"

"Like, no way loser."

"Then this is _au revoir_, _Mademoiselles__. _May we meet again on the path of life when you open your minds a smidgeon."

He turned around the corner and smacked right into the waiting Zoro.

"Shit-head! What was that for?"

"You walked into me bastard!" They both stood up and brushed off the dust. "What was up with the random French anyway? You're in my Spanish class first block."

"I'm from France idiot. The school won't let me take a langue I'm already fluent in."

"You're French?"

"Part French. I was born in France. Why do you care? This information is probably breaking the little world you've already created for yourself."

"Confirming it. French people are known for being egotistical."

"Only in your fantasy world." Unwillingly they started walking to Spanish together.

"Do the others know?"

"Know what?"

"That you're French."

"Yeah, they know. Half the school knows. Why don't you? Oh, that's right: you're an ass."

"Hey, it's not like you're trying to get to know me either!"

"You're on the fencing team." Sanji stated. "You're the A-strip saber**, but you only picked that up because it's the closest thing the school has to kendo, which you practice at home. Your father is Japanese, so he was able to teach you, but lately you've been developing your own style with three katana instead. And you're an ass."

"You stalking me or something? And that last part wasn't necessary."

"It's funny what you can find out about a person if you _pay attention_. And it is, because you are. Your grades suck too."

"Hey, I'm going to be the greatest swordsman ever. I don't need school for that."

"Swordsmen don't get paid well stupid. You're going to go broke as soon as you step out into the real world." The blonde smirked. "And you've now just revealed your life goal to me, so it's only fair you know mine."

"I don't care…"

"Well, I'm telling you anyway, because then you will be forced to learn something else about me and maybe lessen your asshole-ishness. Despite your shitty formula for my life, I actually _don't_ want to own the Baratie. I want to start my own place, All Blue."

"What's the difference?"

"The difference is that it will be mine, and I'd have earned it."

Zoro wasn't expecting that. It went against everything that Sanji was supposed to stand for and yeah, he didn't like it. Just more proof that he was a giant prick.

But when they got to Spanish and sat down on either side of Luffy, Zoro couldn't help but feel a little bit like an ass.

* * *

It was that one weekend a month where Luffy went up North to visit his brother, so it was just Zoro, Usopp, and Sanji, if Zeff let him off work. Usually Zoro and Usopp would just spend the day on Main Street, either at the arcade or visiting the various shops and restaurants and stuff, with Sanji catching up when he could, but today it seemed that Usopp was running late.

Not one to just sit around waiting, Zoro decided to venture to his house to see what was up. He didn't know when Usopp moved to down by the docks, but that's where he ended up. Taking a look around proved fruitless until he heard a scream that sounded exactly like his lying friend. Naturally he hurried over to investigate the source.

The scene lay before him was truly mystifying. Usopp was on the ground, sitting up against a wall with minor injuries, while Sanji was standing in front of him, bleeding from a few places on his arms and torso. Three really big guys armed with knives were surrounding them.

"How long do you think you can keep this up, blondie?" One of them smirked. "You won't hold out much longer."

"We'll see about that shit-heads." The three gorillas charged at once. Zoro was about to step in and interfere, but before he could, Sanji dropped down and shot his foot up into the middle one's jaw, knocking him unconscious. Without missing a beat, he swept his legs out to knock the one on his right down and followed that up with a quick kick to the last one's gut. A quick drop kick to the one that was already down to prevent him from coming back up and Sanji was victorious.

"Is it over?" Usopp asked.

"Yeah, it's over." Usopp jumped to his feet and wrapped his arms around Sanji who hissed slightly.

"Thank you. I could have taken them out myself, of course, but I figured you could use the exercise more."

"Thanks for your generosity, Captain Usopp, but could you let me go?"

"Right. Sorry." He did just that.

"What happened here?" Zoro asked, walking towards them.

"Look who finally decides to make an appearance. Not that I needed your help."

"Clearly. Of course, I could have done that without the unnecessary injuries."

"No, you would have turned them into life threatening injuries." Usopp sighed. "Do you two really need to get into this now?"

Zoro would have responded, but he noticed something moving behind Sanji. The more he stared at it, the more he realized it was one of the gorillas from before, sneaking up behind the blonde with his knife.

"Sanji, look out!" He lunged forward without really thinking, and managed to punch the guy in the face, forcing him to drop the knife. The swordsman turned to see Sanji with his foot in another one of the gorilla's gut, lead pipe falling from his hand. Usopp was on the ground playing dead. He blushed when he realized that that was aiming for where his head was moments before.

"…you okay?" Zoro managed to ask. Sanji nodded.

"How about you?" He nodded back.

"Thanks…" the both muttered at the same time, followed by an awkward "don't mention it" from both sides as well.

Sanji went to help Usopp up. Zoro watched him for a bit before saying, "You know...I'm starting to think I was wrong about you."

"No shit Sherlock. Did you just come to this stunning conclusion now?"

"Hey, I'm trying to repair bridges here. Can you stop acting like a condescending ass for two seconds?" The blonde complied. "So, yeah, I'm sorry and stuff."

"That's it?"

"I…shouldn't have judged you. I was wrong, and for that I'm sorry. You're still a prick though."

"And you will always be an ass."

"But, maybe we can, like, start over or something."

Sanji stared at him for a moment while the green-haired kid squirmed under his gaze. Eventually he offered him his hand. "Hello. My name is Sanji Blackleg. I come off as kind of a prick, but hopefully you won't be stupid enough to let that bother you."

Zoro shook his hand. "I'm Zoro Roronoa. I'm sort of an ass, but maybe you'll be man enough to get over it."

Usopp sighed. "This looks like the beginning of one messed up friendship..."

* * *

*** Since I have to go off of my own high school experiences, they have block schedualing. Instead of 8 periods a day for like 20 minutes and a 10 minute lunch or whatever, there are 4 blocks for 90 minutes and an hour for lunch. Unit lunch means that you can spend this hour anywhere on school grounds, and it's always the thing that's threatened to be taken away when anything goes wrong, like if the freshmen trash the hallways.**

**** Quick fencing lesson: In a normal fencing meet, you only play three fencers per weapon, A-strip, B-strip, and C-strip, A being the supposed best fencer on the team for that weapon and C being the supposed third best. Saber is the only one that involves slashing. The target is the entire upper body, including the gloves and mask.  
**


End file.
